‘Mango Nagar’ in Damalcheruvu, one of the State’s oldest and largest mango markets, is bustling with activity today, as always during this part of the year.
While Chittoor district produces Bengalura, Benisha, Pullura, Khader, Totapuri and Kalepad varieties of mangoes aplenty, a sizeable chunk procured by this market goes to Punjab, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Odisha, Karnataka and Kerala.
Mixed fortune
The copious rain last October brought cheer among farmers as well as traders, but the traders who had booked yield in advance were in for a shock as sudden showers after a prolonged drought spell gave more shoots to trees and inhibited flowering. Such merchants got stuck up as they could neither walk out of the deal, nor find the price remunerative. On the other hand, traders who had no strings attached and merely received the stocks that poured in, found the price band lucrative. “Though the price is considered better, it is the same as last year, in spite of lesser inflow of stock,” says Nagoor Basha, who owns a ‘mandi’. “The price is not commensurate with the short supply, going by the economic principle of demand-supply price,” added Mr. Basha, who has ben in the business for 25 years. Gujarat’s Kesar variety flooding Maharashtra markets came as another bolt from the blue for these traders. The ‘fixing’ of procurement rate by local processing units caused further stagnation in prices. While smaller markets like Tirupati, Bangarupalyam, Kodur, Rayachoti and Chittoor have grown of late, the mighty Damalcheruvu has witnessed stunted growth.
In spite of its size, the market remains highly unorganised. There are around 110 small and big traders in this small town abutting the Chittoor-Kurnool national highway.
